As we get towards the back end of the season’s midpoint, the talk always tends to get that little bit louder for the next season.
It’s been an incredibly exciting season so far, with the end of the season welcoming what could be a classic championship battle between McLaren teammates Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.
The pair are almost 100 points ahead of Max Verstappen, which in itself has got the rumour mill spinning and he’s now a 50/1 shot with most bookmakers to win the Drivers Championship now. The two horse race is an exciting one; experts from the review site MightyTips found that across many of the betting apps it reviews they have Piastri just ahead of Norris in their odds, thanks to the nine point lead he has in the standings.
Whichever way the odds swing over the coming months, one thing is for sure is that McLaren will be keen to see both in their colours for many years to come. But it's less certain elsewhere.
With the rumours starting to hot up, MightyTips’ resident F1 expert, Kate Richardson, takes a look at the current state of play…
Firstly, Verstappen will STAY with Red Bull
Perhaps firstly, it’s important to address the great Verstappen. There have long been rumours he’ll be making the switch to Mercedes for next season, with Team Principal Toto Wolff even stating he was having conversations with the Dutchman.
However, ahead of the Budapest Grand Prix, Verstappen addressed the rumours saying: "I think it's time to basically stop all the rumours, and for me it's always been quite clear that I was staying anyway. I'm discussing with the team the plans, the things that we want to change next year so that means I'm also staying with the team for next year.”
But who will partner the Dutch racer?
Who will partner Verstappen is a different matter. Red Bull are currently considering who that will be, with Isack Hadjar, Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda all out of contract at the end of the season.
Team Advisor Helmut Marko has batted away any speculation around Tsunoda taking that second seat, telling F1-Insider: “Our driver evaluation traditionally takes place after the summer break.”
So we certainly won’t know anytime soon, with some even suggesting that Red Bull junior Arvid Lindblad could get the nod.
Mercedes yet to secure line-up
Both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli are out of contract at the end of the year, making Mercedes the only team to have both drivers potentially leaving at the end of term.
Speculation continues to grow and as mentioned Wolff was potentially looking at bringing Verstappen into the fold. George Russell has raced well this year and sits fourth in the Driver’s Standings, just 15 points behind Verstappen.
That’s his best return ever having already secured six podium finishes and while official confirmation hasn’t been made, Wolff did say in Budapest that “definitely he’s staying”.
It is likely Antonelli will stay too. The young racer has been backed by his team and despite not the best season they are likely to stick with him.
Alpine may ditch Franco Colapinto
Colapinto arrived into the season after six races following a difficult start for Jack Doohan, but it’s not been much better for the Argentine either. He’s currently on a race-by-race contract and he’s already admitted he has struggled with the Alpine car.
That could see him dropped for the remainder of the season with reserve Paul Aron potentially taking over.
Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez are potential alternatives for Colapinto, which could start as early as after the summer break, never mind 2026.
Cadillac weighing up options
Of course, there will be two drivers in Cadillac colours for the 2026 season too, with Sergio Perez also rumoured for one of those seats. He’s a clear front-runner, so it would take a good offer from Alpine to land him, while Colton Herta and Bottas are also in the mix and being tipped as the three favourites.
Mick Schumacher’s name has also been thrown out there, while former Sauber driver Zhou Guanyu and Aston Martin’s Felipe Drugovich are also believed to be on team principal Graeme Lowdon’s shortlist.
What we know: Confirmed line ups
There’s set to be no changes for some teams, so to finish off we’re rounding up the stable positions on the grid, but outside of the below there’s going to be plenty of drama over the coming months as contracts are thrashed out for what could be a thrilling 2026 season.
McLaren: Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri
Ferrari: Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton
Red Bull: Max Verstappen
Williams: Alex Albon, Carlos Sainz
Aston Martin: Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll
Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber: Nico Hulkenberg, Gabriel Bortoleto
Haas: Esteban Ocon, Oliver Bearman
Alpine: Pierre Gasly
Of those, McLaren will undoubtedly be the team to beat in 2026, but of course there will be plenty of twists and turns between now and the beginning of next season that could change that course slightly. We know we can’t keep our eyes and ears off the news sites and press conferences!
